Fairest #10

It’s somewhere around the halfway point for Rapunzel’s adventure in Tokyo, and there’s a lot of stuff happening, scary exes, missing children, possible love… Fairest was never going to be stories just for those who like princesses.

Writer: Lauren Beukes | Artist: Inaki Miranda

Cover: Adam Hughes | Publisher: Vertigo

For those who haven’t picked up an issue of Fables before from Vertigo, the premise may seem kind of silly, overdone or what have you, because we’ve all heard these fairytale stories before. But this is so incredibly different, and definitely written for adults as opposed to children.

In Fairest #10, we’re just smack dab in the middle of Rapunzel’s adventure/life crisis as she travels to Tokyo in search of her lost daughters, and it’s just fantastic. This Rapunzel isn’t like the Rapunzel we’ve known from stories growing up or from Disney, her story is much darker and weaves a gripping tale. Up until this point, little about Rapunzel’s past has been revealed, except for a bit of reveal on her connection to Japan, but this time, it’s so much more of her backstory and it’s—fantastical. It seems a bit silly to use a word like fantastical for (surprise!) a fantasy based story, but it truly is the best descriptor for this. There’s an amazing spread in which we see Rapunzel has weaved a nest in the middle of a forest out of her own hair and it’s gorgeous. Crazy, but gorgeous.

That is to say everything about this is crazy but gorgeous, with giant cats and hallucinogenic apples that give princesses mind trips and yet everything is just woven with this great narrative that even the moments where things take a turn for the upsettingly creepy (that is if you’re creeped out by dolls and babies and the like) it all still haunts you in the way that you just need to keep turning that page.

Clearly this isn’t a kid’s book, and most certainly for adults, we open with a copious amount of blood from the previous issue, and there’s fighting (which the art is stunning for) though not too much in this particular issue, though Rapunzel looks fantastic in Roman armour. But based on the cliffhanger this issue was left on, there should be an epic battle expected for the next issue to come, to which there’s little space for any doubts that it wouldn’t be, because there hasn’t really been any disappointments prior and all antagonists have strongly pulled through.

Fairest keeps the narrative of a fairy-tale, effectively suspending all levels of belief, and taking the reader to another world that has interwoven itself in the mundane (mundie) world and the art alone is spectacular. Adam Hughes’ covers alone are worth the issue (personally) but upon opening the pages, a reveal of great, great happenings presents itself. Overall, Fables and Fairest especially shouldn't be overlooked because it's a gripping series (particularly for those who enjoy fantasy or princesses kicking butt) and currently they're giving out a great story with Rapunzel that shouldn't be missed.